DA: Cohoes killing justified

Man who opened fire on intruder pleads to marijuana charge

Cohoes Police Department announces the arrest of Shawn M. Rogowski, 24, for the misdemeanor of endangering the welfare of a child. Rogowski is the resident of the home that was the target of the reported robbery attempt. His alleged actions at the time of the incident and evidence of illegal activity in the apartment prior to the incident lead to the charge due to the presence of an infant in the residence when the incident took place. less

Cohoes Police Department announces the arrest of Shawn M. Rogowski, 24, for the misdemeanor of endangering the welfare of a child. Rogowski is the resident of the home that was the target of the reported ... more

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Cohoes Police Department announces the arrest of Shawn M. Rogowski, 24, for the misdemeanor of endangering the welfare of a child. Rogowski is the resident of the home that was the target of the reported robbery attempt. His alleged actions at the time of the incident and evidence of illegal activity in the apartment prior to the incident lead to the charge due to the presence of an infant in the residence when the incident took place. less

Cohoes Police Department announces the arrest of Shawn M. Rogowski, 24, for the misdemeanor of endangering the welfare of a child. Rogowski is the resident of the home that was the target of the reported ... more

DA: Cohoes killing justified

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COHOES - A man who shot and killed an intruder - firing the shot near a sleeping baby - pleaded guilty to a marijuana possession charge that resolved the charges police initially filed against him.

Prosecutors said Shawn Rogowski was justified in firing on the two men who broke into his Remsen Street home on Aug. 5.

Rogowski, 23, will be sentenced to three years probation on Feb. 12, according to the Albany County District Attorney's Office. The misdemeanor charge he pleaded guilty to carried a maximum sentence of one year in jail.

Rogowski legally owned the shotgun he used to kill Daryl Sousie Sr., 37, when Sousie and his brother, Andy Sousie, 31, of Troy, barged into Rogowski's home. Police and prosecutors said the two men were there to rob Rogowski. Police found marijuana in Rogowski's home but authorities have not explicitly said that the Sousie brothers were their to steal the drugs.

In November, Andy Sousie pleaded guilty to attempted robbery in return for a sentence of five years in prison. He's expected to be sentenced Jan. 10.

Rogowski was initially charged with child endangerment but that charge was not part of Tuesday's guilty plea.

"A careful review of the facts led to the conclusion that Mr. Rogowski was justified in his actions to fend off felony burglary intruders in his home," District Attorney David Soares said in a prepared statement.

"Justification for homicide can be used in certain self-defense situations, such as this. Our investigation concluded that the use of lethal force by Mr. Rogowski was in response to a reasonable apprehension of imminent death or great bodily harm to himself or others in the home."

The Times Union previously reported that the Sousie brothers and Michael Peabody, 49, planned for more than a week to rob Shawn Rogowski, 24, in his second-floor apartment at 258 Remsen St. in the early morning. Peabody faces conspiracy charges.

During the incident, police said Rogowski fired a shotgun over the bed where his girlfriend's 11-month-old baby was sleeping and hit Daryl Sousie in the stomach. Sousie later died at Samaritan Hospital.